Niki's parents were thieves-for-hire known as the Moth and the Whisper, but they've disappeared without a trace, and Niki is determined to find them. They take up their parents' mantles and start taking jobs of their own, finding some allies along the way, but the more they learn, the more questions they have.

*I received an ecopy of this book via Edelweiss. This has not influenced my review.*

I really liked this, and here’s why:

– Nice art! How it looks on the cover is basically how it looks inside (but, you know, with panels and whatnot).

– Cool premise! A bit superhero-esque, a bit spy-esque, except the main character is a thief-for-hire with high-tech gadgets, taking up the mantle of their parents who recently disappeared.

– A genderqueer main character! They even state it on the page, and they use they/them pronouns. They also have a high-tech suit that’s mostly used for missions and safety, I think, but it allows them to have different gender expressions, sometimes masculine, sometimes feminine.

– Diversity/inclusivity! There weren’t too many characters in this volume, but Niki was genderqueer, Niki’s mother and the character helping Niki had dark skin, and every character didn’t have the same typical “perfect” body types sometimes found in comics.

– Futuristic cyberpunk world! Lots of technology but also with a creepy, overbearing government vibe.

– Likeable characters! Niki seemed very down-to-earth, determined, and maybe a little sassy. But they also seemed kinda lonely and a bit lost, what with their parents having disappeared. I felt for them in their plight and wanted to just give them a hug, chill with them, and be friends. I’ll be curious to get to know them better and see if/how their character changes throughout the series. There were only two other non-villain characters, but I liked them too.

– Possible future romance? This is pure speculation, and I’ll be happy to keep reading whether there’s romance or not, but I sense there might’ve been a bit of chemistry between Niki and Walter.

The blurb calls this a “YA cyberpunk thriller.” I don’t know exactly how old the characters are (maybe I missed that) and I didn’t get any particular YA vibe from the story, but I see no reason why this couldn’t be read by teens.

Everyone knows that the two greatest thieves in the city are the Moth and the Whisper. Very few know that the Moth and the Whisper disappeared six months ago. And what nobody knows is that the new Moth and Whisper are actually one person pretending to be both of them. One supremely skilled but uncertain young genderfluid thief: Niki, the child of the Moth and the Whisper.

Niki has been trained by their parents in the arts of stealth and infiltration, but they’re still just a teenager, and now they’re alone, searching for their parents in a hostile cyberpunk dystopia. Corporations run the streets while crime lords like Ambrose Wolfe run the alleys-identity is a commodity and privacy is impossible. The truth about Niki’s parents and their disappearance is out there, but can Niki survive long enough to find it?

A YA cyberpunk thriller starring a genderqueer super-thief, MOTH & WHISPER is the brainchild of Ted Anderson (My Little Pony, Adventure Time) and Jen Hickman (Jem and the Holograms, The Dead), that just HAD to be told at AfterShock!

Cyberpunk? Ears perk up! I’m always on the lookout for cool comics w/a cyberpunk/ futuristic vibe. And characters you want to chill with are icing on the cake. I’ll have to look into this. Maybe ComiXology has its…

Yay! Hoopla is great, and they do have so much selection. Don’t know how many recs I have though, I feel like I’ve felt kinda meh about a lot of the comics I’ve borrowed lol. Idk what kinda tablet you have, but I have the Hoopla app for my phone and kindle, although I find it easier to read comics on my computer.

Artwork in a graphic novel is essential and looking at the cover this one is definitely ticking the box for me. And cyberpunk with a superhero-esque/spy-esque premise sounds good to me. I’ve never even heard of this and I kind of want to check it out. Glad you discovered this so I could too!